Conveyor of specimen containers with spur units in laboratory automation systems

ABSTRACT

It is described a conveyor of specimen containers ( 9 ) supported by carriers ( 8 ) in laboratory automation systems comprising at least one analyzer ( 10, 50, 60 ). Said conveyor comprising a main transport unit ( 2 ), at least one spur transport unit ( 4 - 5, 7 ) allowing the positioning of the specimen container ( 9 ) inside said at least one analyzer ( 10, 50, 60 ) without removing said specimen container ( 9 ) from its carrier ( 8 ).

The present invention concerns a conveyor of specimen containers withspur units in laboratory automation systems.

In the '90s Laboratory Automation concept started growing due to labourshortage, labour costs increase, awareness of the exposure of operatorsto biological hazard and so on.

It has been in above said years that institutions like the CLSI—Clinicaland Laboratory Standard Institute (formerly NCCLS—National Committee forClinical Laboratory Standards) started working on recommendations forthe manufacturers of clinical instruments.

Some of said recommendations were related to indications on how a newanalyzer should have sampled a specimen container: said indications aretoday known as “point in space” sampling.

Such recommendations were suggesting the position outside of theanalyzer where the analyzer itself, with its own means, should have hadto send the sampling probe in order to sample the specimen container.

Said indications were aimed to get all the analyzer's manufacturesaligned to a standard to facilitate the design and realization ofautomatic processing systems for specimen containers.

Said automation solutions are generally obtained with different types ofconveyor belts that move biological samples along a path where thelaboratory process is performed: such a process may have differentcomplexity including only part of the process tasks or may be verysophisticated and accomplish almost any task related with the laboratoryprocess.

With analysers which are not CLSI compliant the only possible solutionis presently represented by the use of complicated robotic arms andgrippers capable to grip the specimen container out of the its carrierand transfer it into their sample feeding systems. This solution,generally known as “operator emulation solution”, is very expensive,complicated and generally not feasible for small analyzers because ofits cost.

As used herein, the term “specimen container” means a vessel thatcontains a solid or liquid and has a tubular opening for access to thecontents, e.g., a test tube or vial.

As used herein the term “laboratory automation solution” means anysystem that has at least one analyzer integrated into the system; thesystem being capable to perform automatically the analytical portion ofthe process.

Within such laboratory automation solution the specimen containers aregenerally inserted into a carrier, which may (but it is not necessary)have a tag (transponder technology) to allow its identification alongthe process run and said carrier is moved along the process by aconveyor belt and it is stopped, as convenient, to execute automaticallycertain process task.

Object of the present invention is to provide a solution that allows allof the analyzers that are not CLSI compliant to be linked to alaboratory automation system that uses a conveyor system to movespecimen containers along the pre-analytical, analytical andpost-analytical process.

According to the invention said object is achieved by a conveyor ofspecimen containers supported by carriers in a laboratory automationsystem comprising at least one analyser, said conveyor comprising a maintransport unit, characterized in that it further comprises at least onespur transport unit allowing the positioning of the specimen containerinside said at least one analyzer without removing said specimencontainer from its carrier.

The spur transport unit allows to go inside the working area of theanalyzer, stopping the carrier with the container in a sampling positionof the analyzer.

The importance of this solution is due to the fact that most of theanalyzers are still not compliant with the CLSI standards as theirtechnology is still tight to technological constraints that are notfacilitating the “point-in-space” sampling and this situation makes saidanalyzers almost excluded by the possibility of being linked to alaboratory automation solution.

The concept of the present solution has been obtained by reversing theidea that the analyzer should have had its own means in order to sample,outside of its foot print, accessing the specimen container that ispresented on one side of the analyzer: the non obvious solution has beenthe concept of being able to use an accessory equipment to the conveyorsystem so to allow the specimen container to reach a position, insidethe working area of the analyzer, where the regular pipetting tools ofthe analyzer can sample the specimen.

The characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appearevident from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereofillustrated as non-limiting example in the enclosed drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the conveyor according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective top view of a spur unit;

FIG. 3 is a perspective bottom view of a spur unit;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a spur unit;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view according to line V-V of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective top view of a second embodiment of the spurunit;

FIG. 7 is a perspective bottom view of said second embodiment of thespur unit;

FIG. 8 is a perspective enlarged top view of a third embodiment of thespur unit;

FIG. 9 is a perspective top view of a spur unit with an embodiment of acarrier reverse running device;

FIG. 10 is a frontal view of said embodiment of the carrier reverserunning device.

A conveyor 1 shown in FIGS. 1-10 comprises a main transport unit 2(FIG. 1) and spur transport units, in particular straight spur transportunits 4 (FIGS. 2-5), disc spur transport units 7 (FIG. 8) and a “L” spurtransport unit 5 (FIGS. 6-7).

The spur transport units 4-5, 7 are connected with the main transportunit 2 through connecting portions or pit lanes 6 (FIG. 1).

On said conveyor 1, along guides 14, run, by main and secondary drivenbelts 11 and 40, detectable carriers 8 supporting specimen containers 9which are processed in analyzers 10, 50, 60 placed inside a laboratory.

The laboratory also includes a container input/output module or rackwith a loading/downloading arm (not shown).

The conveyor 1 supports detecting sensors 12 (FIGS. 6, 8), for examplebarcode detecting sensors, which control that a specimen container 9remains associated with a certain carrier 8 for all the loop inside thelaboratory.

In this way it is possible to identify the container 9 by its carrier 8.

The spur units 4-5 comprise container stop devices 70 and, in the endportions, reversing discs 13.

In FIGS. 9 and 10 is shown an embodiment of a carrier reverse runningdevice 200 which comprises a disc 13 mounted on a vertical screw shaft201 with a traction spring 202 supported by bushes 203, with a nut 204and a locknut 205.

The disc spur units 7 include further carrier stop devices 70 (FIGS. 6and 8) and positioning discs 30.

An embodiment of carrier stopping devices 70 comprises a blocking member51 driven by a pneumatic mechanism 52 (FIG. 8).

About the operation of the conveyor 1 according to the presentinvention, shown in FIG. 1, firstly a loading arm (not shown in thedrawing) puts a specimen container 9 from a sample rack module 20 in acarrier 8. Detecting sensors 12 read the carrier 8 and a barcode reader(not shown) reads the specimen container 9.

Now a PC process controller or control unit knows that said container 9is associated with said carrier 8.

Between two analyzers 10, 50, 60, the carriers 8 are moved by the mainbelt 11.

When a carrier 8 arrives inside or close to an analyzer 10, 50, 60, thecontroller, by the carrier ID sensors 12, decides if the container 9supported by said carrier has to be processed by said analyzer 10, 50,60.

There are three kinds of spurs according to the type of the analyzer 10,50, 60 which might process the container 9:

1) a disc spur unit 7;

2) a straight spur unit 4;

3) a “L” spur unit 5.

In the first case, after carrier identification the carrier 8 isdeviated by a diverting device 99 on a secondary belt 40 of theconnecting portion or pit lane 6, which ships the carrier 8 on thedriven positioning disc 30 of the disc spur unit 7. When the carrier 8is in the sampling position 80 of the analyzer, the blocking member 51stops the carrier 8 and the analyzer starts the sample pipettingoperation.

In the second case, after carrier identification the carrier 8 isdeviated by a diverting device 99 on a secondary belt 40 of theconnecting portion or pit lane 6, which ships the carrier 8 on thedriven belt 41 of the straight spur unit 4. When the carrier 8 is in thesampling position 80 of the analyzer, the blocking member 51 stops thecarrier 8 and the analyzer starts the sample pipetting operation.

Finally, in the third case, after carrier identification the carrier 8is deviated by a diverting device 99 on a secondary belt 40 of theconnecting portion or pit lane 6, which ships the carrier 8 on thedriven belt 42 of the “L” spur unit 4. When the carrier 8 is in thesampling position 80 of the analyzer, the blocking member 51 stops thecarrier 8 and the analyzer starts the sample pipetting operation.

In the last two cases the sampling position 80 is inside the machine, inparticular in the second case is depth inside the analyzer.

The choice of the type of spur unit 4-5, 7 depends on the arrangement ofthe analyzer.

According to the object of the present invention, the container 9remains always on its carrier 8, so that the link between them is neverbroken.

When the pipetting is finished, the blocking member 51 disengages thecarrier 8, the belts 41-42 and the carrier reverse running device 200send the carrier 8 to the connecting portion or pit lane 6 and finallyto the main belt 11.

In the carrier reverse running device 200 (FIGS. 9, 10), the rotation ofthe disc 13 is directly driven by the belt 41-42. A correct setting ofthe traction spring 202 allows to generate a friction between the uppersurface of said belt 41-42 and the bottom surface of the disc 13, beingthe rotation of the disc due to the opposite verse of motion of theparallel adjacent belts 41-42.

Said reverse running device 200 is also usable in the main belt 11.

The container 9 is now ready for the next analyzer 10, 50, 60.

Usually in the laboratory there are further work stations, for example adecapper station, a desealer station or a capper station (not shown inthe drawings).

When operations on a container 9 are finished, at the end of theconveyor loop, the container 9 is gripped by a downloading arm,separated from the carrier 8 and put in the rack 20.

The spur units (4-5, 7) allow flexibility inside a medical laboratory,depending the conveyor arrangement on the building of the analyzers.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A conveyor for conveying a plurality ofcarriers, each carrier supporting single specimen containers in alaboratory automation system, said laboratory automation systemcontaining analyzers, comprising: a main transport unit connected byconnecting portions to spur transport units suitable to convey saidcarriers to sampling positions inside analyzers associated with one ofsaid spur transport units, the spur transport units structurallyseparated from said analyzers, said main transport unit being providedwith a main driving belt, each spur transport unit being provided with agoing driven belt and a return driven belt disposed substantiallyparallel to each other, wherein each spur transport unit has differentdimensions and each analyzer has a recess having dimensionscorresponding to the dimensions of the spur transport unit associatedwith the analyzer, said connecting portions including an identifyingdevice, a diverting device, a secondary belt disposed substantiallyparallel to said main driving belt, and a guide which ships carriers onthe going driven belt of each spur transport unit not disposed parallelto said secondary belt, each spur transport unit allowing thepositioning, by a blocking member actuated by the identifying device ofthe specimen container in the sampling position inside the analyzer,without removing the specimen container from a carrier, and each spurtransport unit being provided with a reverse running device, including afriction disc interacting with said going driven belt and with saidreturn driven belt to return the carriers supporting the analyzedcontainers back to the connecting portions and to the main transportdriving belt.
 2. The conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the reverserunning device comprises a disc mounted on a vertical screw shaft with avertical traction spring that creates friction between an upper surfaceof the going and return belts and a bottom surface of the disc due tothe rotation of the disc and the opposite motion of the parallel,adjacent belts.
 3. The conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the spurunit comprises a disc spur unit, a straight spur unit or an “L” spurunit.